Cooper Marody played like a Hobey Baker finalist [James Coller]

OFFENSE

Analysis: Awesome. This was a wonderful output of offense from Michigan. The Wolverines consistently got into the House and created chances from all over the ice. While it was a tight game, the main reason that is stayed that way was Cayden Primeau. He made about 5-6 fantastic saves. Otherwise, there is a good chance Michigan hangs a couple more on the possession-starved Huskies.

The DMC line went head-to-head with the top scoring line in the country and hung a –3 on them. I’ll get more into the defense in the next section, but Cooper Marody danced throughout the offensive zone and connected with Calderone and Dancs on numerous occasions. Cooper’s first goal was a circling blind shot that snuck in short-side. Dancs added a soft goal to retake the lead, as he shot from a poor angle and was still able to deflect it off of Primeau and inside the far post. Marody’s game winner came from just outside the crease off of a deft dish from Tony Calderone, who had driven the wing and gotten to the goalline.

FWIW, the Slaker-Norris combination could have also had a couple of goals, themselves…including Norris missing a WIDE OPEN net from just under the dot. The Pastujovs-Becker line also created some havoc. Northeastern has a great scoring line, yet couldn’t always get them the puck in the offensive end. Michigan identified that and exploited it all night.

[After THE JUMP: come for the offense, stay for the defense (!). And special teams. And goaltending]

Captain Calderone with his signature snipe [Jamer Coller]

OFFENSE

Analysis: Michigan’s forecheck has been great throughout the weekend and it was on display again in the first period. They did not let Notre Dame out of their zone very often and created a number of solid chances.

Looking at their numbers overall, this is a great offensive performance. They took a lot of attempts and got into the House area for almost half of them. There is a reason that Cale Morris is a Hobey candidate, as was evident this evening. Michigan could have had a few more goals with as many good looks as they had, but Morris stole the show. For their lone goal, Dancs forced a DZTO on the boards, Marody dished to Calderone, and Calderone sniped one just off of Morris’s glove and into the net, therby concluding the scoring.

[After THE JUMP: anatomy of a sweep]

Ah, finishing goals. [Bill Rapai]

OFFENSE

Analysis: Michigan started this game on fire. They created multiple OMRs right off the bat and put the puck in the net twice in the opening period. Hughes ripped a shot and Winborg deflected it behind Morris. Then Dancs found the puck off of a DZTO and beat Morris short side–Morris’s only soft goal of the four. Michigan was able to get deep in the House area all period and could have had a three or four goal lead after the first. Then, it slowwwwed wayyyyyy dowwwwn.

The penalty-fest in the second kept even strength play very similar. Calderone was able to poke home a garbage goal after James Sanchez drew a lot of attention in the slot. In the third, Michigan went full Sparty and registered a 4(1). But, as Sparty would, they scored on their only House chance, as Nick Pastujov picked up a pick in the neutral zone and found his brother across the crease to give M a 4-2 lead.

Tonight is a night that we remember to put Corsi in context. Michigan played very defensively–and rightly so-in the third. The Irish also turned up the pressure, as they needed a couple of goals. The numbers were low, but the offense was fine in context tonight. Plus, they finished chances! WOO!

[After THE JUMP: a couple unbelievable even-strength stats and woop yep probably just cursed them]

“Any more goals yet?” [JD Scott]

[Ed. A- David DMed me about this piece late last night and I didn't see them until now, so the front-page tardiness is on me. Should still get you ready for tonight's game at LCA, though]

OFFENSE

Analysis: I’ve never seen such a discrepancy in even strength attempts in a period. MSU did have a long power play early, but Michigan controlled most of the game at even strength. The story of the game was Lethemon making saves and Michigan skaters just not finishing. The Wolverines created chances all night and got pucks to the net from all over the ice, including the House area and low slot. They just could not beat Lethemon. Aside from a handful of games this year, Michigan has generally been able to create looks, but their finishing has consistently been suspect. For the first half of the season, the DMC line carried them, but even that production has dropped,as defenses have been able to prepare for them; Michigan has also drawn higher-quality goaltending. Nothing exemplifies that better than tonight’s game.

[Hit THE JUMP for more]

Yeah, kinda like that [Eric Upchurch]

OFFENSE

Analysis: Granted, this was probably score-adjusted, but whoa. After a night where Michigan did not create anything at even strength, this looked like a different offense. Michigan took 31 attempts (60% of their total) from the House (front of the net to the dots and up to the top of the faceoff circles) and came away with no goals. Sports! Before there was any score, Michigan created about four looks that had great chances of producing a goal. So, it wasn’t all situational. If the Wolverines reproduce this, they’ll likely get four or five on the board. Hayton played well, but he had bounces go his way tonight. There were rebounds, trickles, and whiffs all night. Michigan just could not bury anything. There are nights like that, and Michigan got one when they could least afford it. Let’s see if they can reproduce this next weekend. They’ll need to do so.

[After THE JUMP: the defense held up, but the goaltending didn't]

Alright, last night was about helping people. Tonight…let’s see what we can get Ace (and maybe Brian –if there’s a revolt!) to do! More things on the table! Hair cuts, dye jobs, ink, piercings, limb severances…ok, maybe I’ve taken this too far. Just give, okay?
https://www.crowdrise.com/o/en/campaign/in-honor-of-the-anbenders-lets-find-a-cure-for-cfs/

OFFENSE

Analysis: This was not an offensive juggernaut by any means, but this is not what the game lent itself to for Michigan. They scored super early, a nice wrister by Brendan Warren– again. Michigan then got a PP tally a few minutes later. While they did create a few chances, Michigan was mostly content to control play and suffocate this game away…which they seemed to do starting in the mid 2nd period. Aside from trading PP goals in the 2nd, Michigan enjoyed a lot possession and generally put the puck in safe places. In a series that generally requires goalz to win, this one did not, and Michigan played it well.

[After THE JUMP: a defensive juggernaut in wait?]

Hey, so Ace has been very forthcoming about some super serious stuff he’s been dealing with for a long time. He’s put together something if you’d like to help out people going through similar experiences. You should click here:

https://www.crowdrise.com/o/en/campaign/in-honor-of-the-anbenders-lets-find-a-cure-for-cfs/

OFFENSE

Analysis: After two games of outplaying a better team, Michigan definitely ceded the puck to Minnesota for the majority of this game. Ironic that this is the one of the last three games that they won. Two of their four non-empty netters were mostly luck. Michael Pastujov threw a puck into the slot and it was kicked back at Robson and between his pads. Warren’s first goal went off of his stick heel (after making a very nice break for the slot, though) and just inside the post. To be fair, Dancs picked a corner and Marody hid a nice snipe under the bar, though, for the first and third Michigan goals. Both Pastujovs are starting to look a little more dangerous, and I also thought Sanchez created some in the offensive zone. Now, if he can just not take silly penalties...

[After THE JUMP: insane penalty stats, woooo defense?]

Guess who’s back, back again… [Bryan Fuller]

OFFENSE

Analysis: Michigan did not have a fantastic offensive game from a volume standpoint, but they did create a lot of good scoring opportunities from the house area– especially the low slot. Having Quinn Hughes available really does add an extra dimension to the offense. There were multiple times that he took the puck end-to-end or just skated circles around the offensive zone looking for nooks and crannies to drop the puck. Once again, though, regardless of what Michigan was able to create, Cale Morris was up to the task. The only goal came on a rapid-fire rebound for Josh Norris after Hughes got deep in the house and forced a reactive save. Overall, it was an encouraging output against a good defense and an elite goalie. Soon, though, they’re going to have to find the back of the net.

I don’t have a chart for this, yet –or a great place to add this- but I counted Michigan getting three odd-man rushes on offense. They had a 2v1 and a couple of 3v2s. The Wolverines generated one good shot and the puck hopped Hughes’ stick, otherwise he would have had an open look.

[After THE JUMP: cleaning (up shots from the) house]

Cale Morris must have had his kale, today (James Coller)

OFFENSE

Analysis: Michigan was down two of their top-six forwards tonight, but you couldn’t exactly tell. They were able to control the puck for the last 50+ minutes of the game and create chances all over the ice. Calderone scored the lone even-strength goal of the game on a power move that somehow caught Morris off of his near post, and the puck trickled between him and said post. Notre Dame entered the game with a elite defense and arguably the best goaltending in college hockey and the latter is what saved them. I thought Michigan was able to beat the Irish defense with enough consistency to score multiple goals. However, Cale Morris was just as good as advertised (with the help of one large post) and stole Michigan’s pot of gold in the end. Michigan didn’t overwhelm from the house area, but multiple lines were able to generate chances, and that is definitely something to build on for the Wolverines. 

[After THE JUMP: quantifying a great defensive effort]

Some of Tony Calderone’s fine work (Bill Rapai)

OFFENSE

Analysis: Michigan overpowered an under-talented MSU team, tonight. This was by no means a bombs-away performance, but they controlled the puck against a team that they should dominate. By the third period, Michigan was getting into the slot with ease. Tony Calderone had a day, netting a hat trick. The offense was driven, again, primarily by the top DMC line. This was a desired and expected result. Doing the same tomorrow night will be a good sign.

[After THE JUMP: Full House. On the stat sheet. Look, it's a thing in hockey stats, okay?]